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Roger Davis
Roger Davis is the current Executive Officer of Hyperion. He rose through the ranks from Marine CO to replace crew losses and incapacitations since the Fall. Due to his origins as a marine officer, Roger tends to be on the formal, disciplined, and strict side of things. These qualities suit him well in his current position where his administrative role tasks him with acting as part disciplinarian, part public figure, and part spymaster. He is one of the most informed persons in the Fleet and uses his position to filter through the mass of intelligence and pass on relevant information both to his superiors and to subordinates that require it. Civilian History Roger was born in a rural section of Aerilon the second son of Jonathan and Lydia Davis. His parents both had previously live in Gaoth, Aerilon, but had moved out to the country shortly after marrying. The couple met during the war and decided to get away, and back to their roots. Roger grew up on the land and was raised to be a farmer like his father. He was taught to plow, to ride, to hunt, etc. Roger's childhood was fairly unremarkable beyond that. Life on the farm was nothing if not repetitive. He had his own social experiences and went to the local school, but nothing of great significance. Roger looks fondly on his quiet childhood. He still has strong ties to his home, embraces Aerilonian culture, and at times even his Aerilonian accent can be heard. Prior Service Record The Academy - 1988-92 When Roger came of age, he wanted to follow his father's footsteps into the Colonial Fleet. Jonathan Davis although proud and deeply touched by it, was less than enthused by his son's decision to leave home and put himself in harm's way. He managed to convince Roger to enroll at one of the military academies and become an officer instead of enlisting straight away. He knew the advantages that came with being an officer and the comparison to enlisted life firsthand. He wanted his son to be in the best position possible both in the service and once he was through and back in civilian life. An officer's commission might help protect his son and keep him a little further from harm's way as well. Roger did as his father wished. Instead of being accepted to the local academy on Aerilon, Roger was instead offered a position at the Fleet's primary military academy on Caprica. The young farm boy thus left not only his rural home but his homeworld. His first interstellar trip took him to the urban and technological capital of the Colonies where he'd spend the majority of his next four years in study. Flight School - 1992 Roger always had his sights set on a direct combat role. It is understandable why a young man looking for adventure wouldn't be fulfilled by sitting at a terminal all day or making sure some Tylium reactor was working. Thus, it seemed the young man's future was in the seat of a Viper. Roger did well on nearly all parts of his training. His scores for general knowledge, Viper tactics, basic maintenance, etc. were all near perfect. His practical application of those skills, however, left much to be desired. Roger turned out to be a decent pilot so long as he wasn't being shot at. He could take off, fly around, and land no problem. That would have been fine if he were just some civilian pilot, but he was expected to be a fighter ace. When put into simulated combat, the young ensign could not meet standard expectations. His results appeared far worse than they actually were when looked at in the grander scope of his high marks at the academy and even his high marks on the written tests for flight school. Roger was clearly a bright and talented young man but there was just something about space combat that he didn't "get". Maybe it was the issue of fighting in three dimensions, the speed of it all, controlling a machine rather than one's body, or simply not having that "gift" for flight that so many others talk about. Roger was put into a remedial course to see if he could improve but his results were barely affected. He scored well enough just barely to pass the program and earn his flight wings, but it was quietly decided that Ensign Davis would not be kept in the Air Wing where he'd always be a sub-par pilot. Marine Corps Patrolstar Achilles 1993-95 Roger was soon transferred to the only other real direct combat option available, the Colonial Marine Corps. He spent the first portion of his tour settling into his new branch and getting used to life as a marine and over his failure as a pilot. By the time his tour on the Achilles was over, Roger was completely molded into marine-mode and had been promoted now to Lieutenant Junior Grade. Battlestar Columbia 1995-97 LT JG Davis was then assigned to the Columbia where he served for over two years. Apart from a few incidents, his time on Columbia was quiet. Roger was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade while serving aboard the ship and, despite the rocky start to his career, was noted as an excellent marine officer, the career path he should have been slated for in the first place. It was on Columbia that he met and developed a strong and long lasting friendship with Chris Wilson. The two would both end up serving together again on the Hyperion. Battlestar Valkyrie 1997-99 Roger was promoted to full Lieutenant and transferred over to the Valkyrie when William Adama, the former XO of Columbia, was given command of the vessel. Rather than serving as a marine, however, Roger was placed in the CIC as Tactical Officer for the Battlestar where he would serve for another two years. Near the end of his tour on Valkyrie, Roger was involved in an incident along the Armistice Line (the historical background for the episode "Hero"). A Colonial spyplane was launched from Valkyrie and sent into Cylon Space to perform recon. Shortly after crossing into enemy territory, the craft was damaged and set upon by numerous Cylon contacts. The order was given to destroy their own spycraft and quickly disengage from the border, an order which Roger as Tactical Officer followed. The mission had already been secret and known only to a small portion of the crew, but those with knowledge were thereafter further sworn to secrecy. In the wake of the incident, the Valkyrie crew, particularly those with knowledge of what truly happened, was largely split up and dispersed. Commander Adama was rewarded for the failed mission with a transfer to aging Galactica. Roger likewise was transferred, this time to the Universal. Battlestar Universal 1999-2001 Davis was once again back in command of marines aboard a Battlestar. As a Lieutenant, Roger was one of the more senior marine officers aboard and had an entire company of marines under his direct command. Roger's time on the Universal, however, was less eventful than his two prior assignments. The only positive outcome from the assignment was plenty of "safe" time to train and grow as an officer and leader of men. Picon Fleet HQ 2001 After the Universal, Roger spent most of 2001 at Picon Fleet HQ as an adjutant to the Admiralty. From a military perspective, this was the most boring post yet, but from a political perspective it was an incredible opportunity. Roger made contacts with some of the more influential persons in the Fleet, learned about the inner workings of the Admiralty and the grand scheme of things, and gained other valuable information both of political and academic natures. Scorpia Garrison 2002 Following his time on Picon, Roger was promoted to Captain and sent for a brief tour of duty planetside on Scorpia. He was given command over an entire battalion of MPs and tasked with policing the many servicemen on shore leave from the Scorpia Shipyards. As far as action goes, this was his most eventful of assignments, but the "combat" all involved breaking up bar fights and investigating crimes. It was fine while it lasted, but it wasn't the same as being in a real combat unit even if it was peace time. Gunstar Havoc 2002-04 Captain Davis was shortly given his wish and an assignment back aboard ship. It wasn't a Battlestar this time, but the assignment to a smaller vessel did have its advantages. Namely, as a captain, Roger was the most senior marine aboard and thus commanded all marines on the Havoc. Under Roger, the marine detachment of the ship quickly became known as one of the most disciplined in the fleet. A few minor combat actions proved their combat effectiveness as well. Battlestar Hyperion 2004 Roger's reputation as a Marine Commander aboard Havoc combined with his contacts from Fleet HQ placed the Captain's name on a short list for higher promotion. Initially, Roger was to be assigned to the Titan, but the vessel's completion was greatly delayed. Instead, Roger was assigned to Hyperion, her sister ship, and promoted to the rank of Major. Roger came aboard on February 13 and began to get to work shaping the new marine complement. Hyperion History The Fall Roger was present in the CIC on March 5th in preparation of Hyperion's maiden voyage. It was there that he witnessed the initial events of the Cylon attack over his homeworld. When Azura Lockhart convinced Commander Baindbridge to jump to Phoebe instead of following orders and immediately defending Caprica, Roger nearly mutinied right then and there for the deliberate failure to follow a Presidential order no matter the dire circumstances and low probability of survival. It was only the speed of the jump to their hiding place that prevented the major from relieving his commander at gunpoint if necessary. Following the initial confusion of the attack, Phoebe Operation, and evacuation of the Zeus Research Station, Roger settled into a somewhat routine existence. Over the next few weeks he mostly dealt with disciplinary issues and ship drama in between normal duties trying to keep the large marine contingent in a fit state despite their lack of action. Admiral Castle and the Mutiny With the arrival of Admiral Castle, Roger was one of the few senior officers that remained on Hyperion. His rank as major saw to that, there being no fit posting for such a marine officer on another ship. He was, however, cut out of the loop and merely went through the motions as the Admiral ran the Fleet. He had the authority so the dutiful marine remained on the sidelines and observed the Fleet wither. Yet, Major Davis was still in position and present in the CIC when the Libran Transit - 055 was destroyed. Although he had stayed his hand those months before with Commander Bainbridge, Roger did not hesitate this time to relieve the CO. Unfortunately for him, he was surrounded by Castle loyalists and instead he was the one escorted to the brig. However, on the way, the Major was rescued by a hastily assembled team under Corporal Scarrna who intercepted them midway. In the fighting, Roger was wounded in the right shoulder. Roger and his rescuers quickly rushed to the deck where they were aided in boarding a Raptor and managed to escape into the Fleet. Roger made his way to the Gunstar where he divulged the truth about the Libran's destruction to Colonel Anterries. After the decision was finally made to mutiny and assault Hyperion, Roger joined the first wave with his marines. His platoon quickly pushed through the ship and after numerous engagements finally stormed the CIC, capturing Castle and retaking control of the Battlestar. Aquaria and Kyle Ryker Following the losses and shake-up of the mutiny, Roger was elevated to the position of Hyperion XO with Kielen Anterries as the new CO. The two men soon began preparations for an offensive operation to get the war effort rolling and perhaps more importantly to get everyone's mind off past events. After a few days of secret planning and military build-up, the Gunstar launched an assault on Aquaria. While the campaign there quickly fell to pieces, Roger and an inner circle on Hyperion were preoccupied with a new issue that had come to light. With the arrival of the Hermes came the Skinjob revelation. The next few days saw Roger leading an effort to covertly search the Fleet for copies of Kyle Ryker, interrogate and study the ones they had in custody, and when possible to prepare a relief mission to Aquaria. Reorganization, Colonial Day, and Caprica Colonel Davis took a leading role in integrating Commander Bainbridge (soon to be Admiral Bainbridge) and President Lockhart back into command of the Fleet following their respective recoveries. During this period he continued to work on the fleetwide recruitment and training while also focusing strongly on dealing with the Cylon skinjobs: interrogations, holdings, searches for more, scientific tests, and the political angle of potential disclosure. Military Awards and Honors Purple Heart 4/25/2004 Major Roger H. Davis, WIA escaping Hyperion during mutiny. Personality Roger is career military. His father served in the first war with the Cylons and his forefathers had fought during the formation of the colonies before that. He is a fighter at heart and still has the mentality of a marine. He isn't afraid to get down and dirty with his men in times of trial but he prefers to keep up appearances and formalities at all other times. Though a military officer for more than a decade as well as being educated and cultured, Roger is still a bit of a country boy from his upbringing on Aerilon. He's generally friendly, courteous, helpful, and above all loyal though none of that gets in the way when he needs to be the disciplinarian or a stern officer. He places his oath of service above all other relationships. Roger is devout to the Lords of Kobol though he keeps his religion to himself. Category:Characters Category:Marine Category:Command Staff Category:Aerilonian